A few weeks ago, I conducted a team alignment meeting for a client. That\u2019s where I get a group of supervisors and managers together with the company\u2019s owner or president, and we create a structured discussion about areas that need attention and action.<\/p>\n
One of the topics that came up was the organization\u2019s mission statement. Now my client happens to have an excellent mission statement. But the problem is, most of the people in his company don\u2019t know it exists, let alone believe in it.<\/p>\n
A 2015 survey conducted by the employee recognition firm Achievers, entitled \u201cThe Greatness Gap: The State of Employee Disengagement\u201d revealed that a staggering 61 percent of employees don\u2019t know their own company\u2019s mission statement. Val Matta, vice president of development at CareerShift, a Jacksonville, Florida, career website, says of that survey, \u201cWhat\u2019s more, 57 percent of those who are familiar with their company\u2019s mission statements are not motivated by them.\u201d<\/p>\n
In our consultation, my client and I discussed the best way to help the entire team embrace his company\u2019s mission statement and identify with it. I recommended holding a meeting with everyone in the company to discuss the present mission statement, and then, doing the following five things:<\/p>\n
We\u2019re in the process of scheduling that team alignment meeting now, and I can hardly wait until we have that discussion. It\u2019s amazing what can happen in a meeting like that. In some past meetings that I\u2019ve facilitated for other companies, the results were quite simply incredible.<\/p>\n
A number of years ago, I conducted a team alignment meeting for the Detroit Metropolitan Airport. At the time, the airport had recently finished installing a beautiful new electronic signage system for its parking structures and lots.<\/p>\n
At the meeting, a suggestion was made by one of the plumbing supervisors. This man \u2014 small in stature, dressed in his blue uniform, and quite reserved through most of the meeting \u2014 raised his hand. In a modest manner, he asked, \u201cIt\u2019s great that we have these new electronic signs for our parking structures and lots. But don\u2019t you think it would be a pretty good idea that instead of simply telling our customers which lots are full, we also inform them about which lots are still open?\u201d The director of the airport, who had been seated in the back of the room, promptly stood up, walked to the front and said, \u201cThat is an absolutely brilliant idea, and we will start implementing it today.\u201d<\/p>\n
There was a buzz of comments and acknowledgments from the plumber\u2019s peers \u2014 and a smile on his face, knowing he\u2019d made a meaningful difference. On my next visit to the airport, I noticed one of the electronic signs displaying the very information the plumber had suggested.<\/p>\n
How about your green industry company? Would this kind of scenario be possible? Do your team leaders, supervisors, foremen and managers have some great ideas that could help make your company better than it is right now? I know what you\u2019re thinking; \u201cOf course they do.\u201d Then, why not give them the opportunity to contribute those ideas?<\/p>\n
I often tell clients who are company owners and presidents that they don\u2019t always have to be the smartest people in the room. They don\u2019t have to have all the answers, but they do need to ask better questions. Then, attentively listen to the answers they get.<\/p>\n
This can go a long way in building a foundation for perennial success. (By the way, if you are the smartest person in the room, you might want to consider inviting other people into it.)<\/p>\n
If you need one more reason why you should have a team alignment meeting to discuss and improve your company\u2019s mission statement, consider this. According to a 2016 report by the Society for Human Resource Management, \u201c76 percent of working adults need to feel their job is meaningful to engage with their company. If the meaning isn\u2019t clear, employees can fall victim to the gravity of a purposeless employee experience.\u201d Your company\u2019s mission statement plays a direct role in helping your team members feel engaged and on-purpose.<\/p>\n
Matta states that a good mission statement creates a \u201ccause\u201d that employees can\u2019t help but connect with on an emotional level. Emotion is a powerful driver of performance. This is especially true for the younger generations. According to a 2015 Deloitte survey, 60 percent of millennials said their company\u2019s purpose contributed to their decision to work there.<\/p>\n
Once you have updated, improved or recreated your company\u2019s mission statement so that it packs an emotional punch, begin putting it to work. Here are some ways to do this:<\/p>\n
Live and breathe it. Remember the saying, \u201cWhat gets rewarded gets repeated.\u201d Reinforce the idea that the mission statement is a living and breathing philosophy. It is real and it feels good to live it. It is part of the reason you are all working for the company.<\/p>\n
Hold a meeting where you bring your entire company together to discuss the present mission statement and organize it around the five items I listed at the beginning of this article. Afterward, positively reward team members whenever you see them living out that revised mission statement.<\/p>\n
By consistently applying this approach, you\u2019ll fortify the mission statement everyone worked so hard to refine. If you follow this advice, you\u2019ll motivate your employees and get them excited about coming to work each day.<\/p>\n
Get more from your employees with a motivating mission statement.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":14,"featured_media":2789,"parent":0,"template":"","columns-categories":[46],"main-categories":[50],"class_list":["post-2786","columns","type-columns","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","columns-categories-business-to-business","main-categories-business-development"],"yoast_head":"\n